


Korrasami Month - Masquerade Ball

by DBsilverdragon, DreamingOfTuscany



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Conventions, F/F, Femslash, Fluff, Korrasami Month, Masquerade, World of Warcraft - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-28
Updated: 2015-12-28
Packaged: 2018-05-09 20:53:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,937
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5554955
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DBsilverdragon/pseuds/DBsilverdragon, https://archiveofourown.org/users/DreamingOfTuscany/pseuds/DreamingOfTuscany





	Korrasami Month - Masquerade Ball

_ Oh my god… How am I ever going to find her in all of this-- this chaos!? _

The Lower Exhibition hall of the Javits Center was swarming with people, most of them brightly and creatively attired in outfits that might have seemed esoteric or otherworldly in any other context, but which  _ here _ , at NYCC 2016’s Saturday Night ‘ **World of Warcraft** Costumes and Cosplay Masquerade Ball’ event, were the  _ norm. _ Here a ‘Gnome’ (complete with big nose and ears) Warlock waddled around squeaking noisily at some a pretty young Night Elf Hunter as he followed her around the Hall. There a tall and regal looking Blood Elf Paladin in glistening red and gold full body armor sweetly smirked down at the tiny pixie-short little Pandaren Monk girl beside her even while  _ she  _ was wiggling her cute little strap-on panda nose back at her. 

It was bedlam, but a controlled, happily humming sort of bedlam. Hundreds, quite possibly thousands of costumed people circulated slowly about in the pre-Ball melee, circulating around between friends, meeting up with guildmates, complimenting (or snarkily commenting - unfortunately there was plenty of  _ that _ going around as well) on each other’s outfits and accessories and makeup, or … doing exactly the same thing Asami was doing right now -- trying to find one another in all of this…  _ this. _

_ :Hey you.: _ Asami tapped into her phone, trying to reach the girl she was supposed to be meeting up with, before they both became hopelessly lost in this sea of people, and before the evening’s festivities really got underway. : _ You said you were already here?: _

 

_ Why did I have to wear these damnable ears _ ? Korra thought as she once again adjusted the rubber ears yet again.  _ Would it have been so bad if blood elves had small ears…but no they had to have long ears. _ She chuckled at the thought. Asami was somewhere in the controlled chaos and this was the first time they were going to be meeting face to face – well, costume to costume. Korra side-stepped a troll warlock who had decided to start his own dancing before the ball was to have started, his arms and legs flailing about. Korra only shook her head and moved deeper into the next mass of people. Korra jumped as she felt her phone vibrate against her thigh. She smiled when she read the message.

_ :Yeah, I’m here _ .: She quickly typed. : _ We have played hide and seek before ;). You’re a blood elf right?: _ Korra hit send and strolled passed by a very tall goblin with make-up not quite sticking and beginning to fade.

 

The reassuring buzz of Asami’s phone at the receipt of Korra’s messages made Asami smile, but she was still no closer to actually  _ finding _ Korra in all of these people. Somewhere near the  _ opposite side  _ of all this ‘controlled chaos,’ Asami breezed effortlessly between a handful of teenage ‘dwarfs’ wearing long woolen beards belted at the waist, who were walking slowly and chanting some variation of ‘The Mountain Song’ from  _ The Hobbit  _ Trilogy under their breaths. She felt a flutter in her heart and in her stomach when she rounded one corner of a glass-cased model ‘Dalaran’ that had been erected (along with nearly a dozen other model pieces representing scenery and structures from the World of Warcraft Universe) in the hall and caught sight of a slender, bronze-skinned and well-built young woman wearing Blood Elf ears. For just a moment her breath caught in her throat and she hesitated, waiting for the girl to turn around, eyes wide with expectation --  _ Was it her?? Korra-- at last?  _ \-- but when she saw the girl’s face both the hope  _ and _ the nerves inside of her sank. 

_ It’s not her. _ Although Asami had never seen Korra  _ in person  _ before, during the course of their relationship over the last three years, as she and the young Inuit woman had gradually deepened a ready friendship into love, the two had traded pictures a plenty, called each other on the phone numerous times, voice chatted during game-play, and -- in the last six months or so -- even Skyped together. If there was any one face that the young Japanese-American girl from New York was sure she would be able to pick out of the crowd -- it was going to be Korra’s. 

But the flutter of nerves gave her pause. Pulling herself out of the crowd for a moment, Asami drew towards the walls and took a seat near a tall Horde Banner Standard prop, trying to collect her thoughts. As she sat down, moving carefully so as not to damage the molded ‘armor’ she was wearing as part of her Blood Elf Fury Warrior costume (in honor of her main character, and the first one she had ever talked to Korra on -- Kiyoshi), she realized that her hands were trembling, and she pressed her palms flat against the backs of her legs to try and calm herself.   
_Okay, so I’m … really, really nervous,_ she admitted to herself, for the first time, really. It hadn’t really occurred to her before - to _be_ nervous. She’d been excited, anxious for the day to come, and then worried that Korra might not make her flight, or that she’d be sick and they’d have to cancel, or - most recently - that she might have trouble finding Korra in the crowds, but _being_ _nervous_ had never even occurred to her before. Korra was… well, she was Korra. Asami had been in love with the northern Fire-and-Aid Rescue worker for over a year now, nearly two. Korra was… well, she was _home._ She wasn’t nervous about meeting her. 

So what  _ was _ she nervous about?

 

Korra rolled her shoulders to adjust her armor as well as the twin harnesses strapped to her back, but mostly to help relieve the growing knot of tension forming between her shoulder blades. Handling nerves had never been a strong suit of hers, sure she could run into trouble to save lives, but when it came to matters of a more personal level…of her heart – she tended to shy away from facing them. However, with Asami it was different, she did not want to shy away from the engineering student and the feelings that at times threatened to overwhelm her. It had been Asami’s idea to meet at the ball and Korra was more than up for it…for a chance to meet Asami for the first time, she would have gladly given up her position. 

Much like Asami, Korra had opted to dress as a Blood Elf Fury Warrior named Shila, the first character she played when she met Asami and joined the guild -  **Rain Down** . She glanced down at the tabard that covered the majority of armor she wore. A matching tabard tucked inside her side bag – a gift for Asami – waited to be given and Korra hoped that she liked it.

“I can help relieve that for you, warrior.” A deep hollow voice said from behind her.

Korra turned to face the speaker only to come face to face with a Tauren Paladin, complete with metal capped horns. “Cut the bull.”

The Tauren laughed. “As if I hadn’t heard that before,” He took a step closer. “Seriously, if you don’t have a date, I’ll be more than happy to escort you.”

Korra reached up and patted the costumes massive shoulder. “I do…I just have to find her.”

“Good luck.” The Tauren bowed and wandered back into the throng of people.

_ Looking for another Blood Elf Warrior with two massive swords should be easy _ . Korra mused as she threaded her way through the crowds – passing by night elves, orcs, and quite a few humans. Two sword handles poked over the crowd and Korra walked over towards them. Ivory black hair cascaded down between the hilts. Korra felt her heart pound and her throat grow dry as she reached out to touch the warrior’s shoulder. She felt her knees go weak as the person turned – it was not Asami. “S-sorry.” Korra muttered as she backed away. The woman only shrugged and returned to her conversation.

Korra walked passed models of the scenery and of the cities of the World of Warcraft, stopping to look at the model city of Dalaran – where she and Asami had spent most of their time waiting for dungeons and raids to start. It was in that city that Korra realized that what she and Asami shared went deeper than friendship. “How am I ever going to find her?” Korra muttered as she made her way towards the Horde banner. An empty bench waited for her and it felt good for her to sit. She tugged at the ears once again. “I should just take these off.” She buried her face in her hands and sighed.

Her mind wandered back to when they first met in character – Asami had been a high level Blood Elf Paladin and Korra was a low level hunter utterly lost in the city of Silvermoon. Korra had whispered to the Paladin asking for help. It had been Asami who suggested they create new characters to play together so she could show Korra the way around the world. “Two warriors strode into the arena and a friendship that could conquer the world emerged.” Korra joked, laughing to herself. But it was through that chance encounter that Korra found herself falling for the person behind those pixelated green glowing eyes.

 

Sitting on the opposite end of the Dalaran model, completely concealed from Korra’s sight by the densely-packed milling crowd, Asami pulled her phone out of the right gauntlet of her costume and stared at it for a moment, nibbling on her bottom lip. What she really wanted in the moment was to hear Korra’s voice. Korra’s voice would make everything better -- it always did.

So why was she hesitating?

What was she afraid of?

Lifting her head, Asami pulled locks of black hair behind her ears and tucked them there, exhaling slowly and letting her lose herself in the crowd, trying to sort through her feelings by letting the hum and buzz of the convention hall pull her away from herself temporarily. She let her mind run through what she was thinking, asking herself questions and letting the answers bubble to the surface.

_ Why am I so nervous? _

The answer was immediate.

_ I love Korra. _

_ So why does meeting the woman that I love make me nervous? _

This time the answer took a while to come to her, and she went through several different possibilities first, while numerous people passed back and forth in front of her. 

_ Could she not be the person I think she is? _

No she didn’t believe that. They’d known each other too long, too intimately for that to be the case. 

_ What if I’m not the person she thinks -- she hopes -- I am? _

That gave her pause for a moment. There was something there -- but that wasn’t it, not exactly. They had been too close, too intimate with each other’s life for Korra not to know her by now. Know what she sounded like when she was sick, what her face looked like when she fell asleep on Skype, what her temper was like when she was busy, when she was underslept and behind on her studies. No one --  _ no one _ \-- knew her better. 

But there was still something there.

_ What is it? _

She stared out at the crowds for a few more minutes, just waiting and watching, half hoping that Korra would find her, and half worrying that she would too. 

And then it hit her:

_ What if the  _ **_spark_ ** _ just isn’t there in person? _

 

Korra sat back, feeling her spine pop back into place, sighing in pleasure as some of the tension relieved itself. The din of the party-goers becoming nothing more than a background buzz – white noise – as she pulled out her phone, tapping into the gallery of pictures. She focused on her favorite one – a picture of Asami with messy hair lying in bed in nothing more than a deep red t-shirt and covers to her waist, holding up a sign “Wish you were here”. Korra looked at that picture every night before falling asleep and it always brought with it peace and pleasant dreams. She had even sent one back to Asami of her wearing a dark blue tank top with a sign reading “Waiting for you” in front of her. It was during their late night talks that Korra came to the realization that she loved Asami. Korra’s memory drifted back to the first time she admitted her feelings.

_ “Love you.” Korra had said one night as they ended one of their video Skype calls. Korra’s eyes widened in horror at the realization of her words. _

_“Do you mean it?” Asami asked as she continued to watch the red of the blush deepen across Korra’s cheeks and across the bridge of her nose._ _  
_ _“Y-yeah.” Korra stuttered, her lopsided grin growing. “Yes, I do.”_

_ “Good. Because,” Asami looked directly at Korra through the video link. “I love you, too.” Her smile wide. _

Korra shook herself from the memory, but the smile of that night remained.

_ “Is this really happening?” _ Korra continued to stare at the photo ignoring the din around her.  _ “I just hope I’m everything she thinks I am.” _ A heaviness settled around Korra at the thought.  _ “I know she’ll be everything I think she is to me.” _

She huffed at her emotions. “That’s not how a badass warrior is suppose to feel,” She muttered. “Take no prisoners, loot all the gold.” She chanted to herself – her battle cry during dungeons and raids.

Something from the other side of the Dalaran display caught Korra’s attention – two hilts of swords, ivory black hair.  _ “It couldn’t be the same one, the hair is different. The hilts are different.” _ Korra furrowed her eyebrows.  _ “Time to see if I strike out again.” _ She stood, adjusting her outfit before walking over. The woman sat staring at her phone, not looking up. It was the sigh that Korra heard that made her knees go weak and her heart beat faster. “Asami?” She asked, standing before the woman.

 

_ ‘Asami?’ _

She recognized the voice immediately, and recognizing it instantly set her mind at ease. All doubts and fears were instantly erased. She snapped her head up, a wide smile blossoming as inky black tresses bounced swiftly up and then rained down around her cheeks. “Korra!” 

Unquestioningly, unhesitatingly, without thought, the young woman on the bench flung herself up at the bronze-skinned northern girl standing before her, wrapping her arms around Korra’s shoulders and grinning brilliantly into her face. “Well it’s  _ about time! _ ”

All of Korra’s doubts and fears dissolved as Asami embraced her. “Oomph.” Korra grunted, steadying herself to keep from falling backwards and dragging Asami with her – that would not have made a good first impression, though it would make for a good story.

Korra wrapped her arms around the raven-haired warrior’s waist. “I told you that I would find you…either in game or in real life,” Her smile widening. “Though finding you in real life is a lot more pleasurable.” Korra whispered before burying her face in Asami’s hair, inhaling deeply.  _ She smells better than I could have ever imagined _ . The world around her disappeared and all that she could focus on was the woman in her arms. She swallowed hard. “Sorry, it took me a while to find you though.” She confessed as she pulled back slightly, but not letting go of Asami’s waist.

 

Korra’s strong arms, folded around Asami’s back and waist, felt so warm and secure -- Asami felt herself pressing against Korra’s chest, squeezing her body close. “It’s fine,” she heard herself saying, sighing happily. “I’m just so happy to be with you now.”

 

“Yeah, me too,” Korra smiled. “And I must say…wow. You look just like your character.”

Asami blushed under Korra’s compliment. “You don’t look so bad yourself.” She gently flicked the points of Korra’s ears, laughing as she watched dark skin flush darker as Korra blushed.

Korra coughed to regain her composure. “Yeah…well…I was this close to taking them off.” She held her fingers mere inches apart before she rubbed the back of her neck.

“Well, I’m glad you didn’t.”

The announcer called out that the doors were opening for the dance. Korra interlaced her fingers with Asami’s. “So, shall we dance?”

“Just for tonight?”

“Here, yes.” Korra pulled Asami close. “But I rather be doing something else.” The words that spilled out of Korra’s lips finally registered with her brain, forcing her to stumble backwards. “I-I’m sorry…that was…too forwards of me. Dammit, I ruined everything.” She tried to step back further, but Asami held her in place.

“Don’t apologize,” A sly grin ticked the corner of her lips. “We’ve said those things before.” People began to filter pass them as the ball had begun, but to Korra and Asami, they were the only ones there.

“But that was video.”

“So what makes this any different?”

“I-I can actually touch you.” Korra felt her resolve growing as she cupped Asami’s cheek.

“And I can do this.” Asami leaned forward and kissed Korra’s lips gently, almost chastely. The spark began to burn, leaving them both breathless as Asami pulled back. “So just one dance?”

Korra led Asami through the double doors. “Just one dance and then you are all mine.”

“Always.” Asami smiled with anticipation as they slipped off towards the dance floor, both of them looking forward to what the rest of the night - and the future beyond - would bring.


End file.
